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One Drop Extravaganza in Monaco raises over $3 million7 November 2016(PRESS RELEASE) -- A charitable poker event to support the One Drop organization has always been at the core of the mission, and it delivered once again. The third iteration of the Big One for One Drop poker tournament made the move to Monte Carlo, Monaco and became an Invitational event, but the focus of the festivities didn't change. Twenty-six recreational poker players took to the felt in the largest buy-in poker tournament ever held – 1,000,000 euros, and at the end of it all, €3,491,000 ($3,805,000) was raised for One Drop, and Elton Tsang walked away with €11,111,111 and the Richard Mille-designed bracelet for winning the event. One Drop, one of the world's leading organizations dedicated to sustainable access to safe water, along with Group Monte-Carlo Société des Bains de Mer and Caesars Interactive Entertainment joined forces at the The Monte Carlo Casino in Monaco to put on a five-day fun-filled extravaganza featuring poker, performances and, most importantly, philanthropy. "It is so gratifying for me to see so much support for this event," said Guy Laliberté, Founder of Cirque du Soleil and One Drop. "From Prince Albert himself, to all the players who made the trip and the entire teams of Monte-Carlo SBM and WSOP, it is amazing what great things can be done for charity when we all work together towards a cause. Thank you for everyone who made this possible. The proceeds raised will have a significant impact on our safe water projects, leaving an indelible mark for the future." "We have been delighted to host this prestigious event in the Casino de Monte-Carlo and to have contributed, thanks to the mobilization of our teams, to the cause defended by Guy Laliberté. We hope to have the pleasure of supporting One Drop in the future," said Pascal Camia, Director of the Casinos de Monaco. The final tally of charitable contributions from this event amounted to €3,491,000 ($3,805,000). It broke down as follows:
With the summer World Series of Poker in Las Vegas raising $1,206,478, in 2016 alone, the multiple poker-focused projects raised $5,011,478. "It is a pleasure for us to use the platform of poker to do such great things for charity," said World Series of Poker Executive Director Ty Stewart. "While it felt like we were on the set of a James Bond movie all week, the real credit goes to the team at SBM and One Drop who really did all the heavy-lifting to ensure this event was such a success." In addition to the $3,805,000 in financial contributions raised during this event, additional in-kind donations inclusive of tournament costs for hosting, operations, television production and marketing have also helped support the One Drop cause. One Drop uses donations to directly implement water access projects, where an average of $100 can transform someone's life forever. The contributed funds will be dedicated to One Drop water projects in West Africa, India and Central America aimed at providing safe access to water today, and for future generations as well as sustainable income generating opportunities. One Drop continues to increase the scale and impact of its work to transform as many lives as possible. |